What has shaped Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his poetry?


Bio
  • Born in Portland, Maine
  • Dreamy boy
  • loved to read
  • Graduated from Bowdoin College
  • Age 32 published first collection of poems
  • Taught at Bowdoin to teach language
  • 1854 stopped teaching and focus on poetry
  • 1807-1882
  • Considered one of the "Fireside Poets"

Historical events
Involved in the Civil War
Dad was prominent lawyer in Portland and
a member of Congress
Most important works were published before the end of the Civil War

Poetry Style
Quatrain
Asonet
Lifting and full of life
Optimist
Opinion- well developed
Uses conventional form

Famous Poems
  • The Psalm of Life
  • The Song of Hiawatha
  • Paul Revere's Ride
  • Christmas Bells
  • Birds of Passage

Other Information
-Studied in Europe
-Worked at Harvard
-24 different companies publishing his works
-Poetry very popular in English speaking Countries
-Admired by Lincoln, Baudelaire, and Dickens